Microsoft Releases Microsoft Exchange Server 5.5

November 17, 1997
|

LAS VEGAS, Nov. 17, 1997 — Today at COMDEX/Fall, Microsoft Corp. announced the release of Microsoft® Exchange Server version 5.5, a member of the BackOffice® family of server products and the Internet-standards-based messaging server that enables the widest range of collaborative business solutions. Microsoft Exchange Server 5.5 was released to manufacturing on Nov. 5, 1997, with general availability anticipated in early December 1997.

“Microsoft Exchange Server 5.5 builds on the proven architecture that over 7 million customers have chosen for their mission-critical messaging and collaboration needs,” said Jim Allchin, senior vice president, personal and business systems group at Microsoft. Microsoft Exchange Server 5.5 delivers an enterprise-ready messaging foundation for the most demanding business needs, Internet standards support for unmatched interoperability with Internet and legacy systems, and the ability to create the broadest range of collaborative solutions.

Rapid Growth of Microsoft Exchange Server in All Segments

Microsoft Exchange Server has experienced an unprecedented rate of growth. Over 7.2 million unit sales have recently been reported in the mail census newsletter Electronic Mail & Messaging Systems (EMMS). According to Eric Arnum, editor at EMMS, “Microsoft Exchange numbers are growing at an incredible rate – almost tenfold in the past year. Recent sales increases suggest that the customers who spent 1996 evaluating and testing the product are now making affirmative purchase decisions.”

Companies of all sizes, including nearly half of the Fortune 100, have standardized on and are successfully deploying Microsoft Exchange Server. Several enterprise customers have already reported large-scale deployments of Microsoft Exchange Server within their organizations, General Electric Corp. having recently deployed over 92,000 units.

“Microsoft Exchange Server is the messaging and collaboration system of choice for General Electric,” said John Kenerson, technology leader, GE. “Microsoft Exchange offers the features we need with the reliability we require to improve business processes for all GE’s users worldwide. Microsoft continues to exhibit leadership in enterprise systems, and we welcome Microsoft’s support for open enterprise-computing standards.”

According to a recent IDC study, polling over 1,000 business users at small, medium and large organizations, Microsoft Exchange was the leading selection in the new server market and the primary product companies were switching to. Organizations that have recently standardized on Microsoft Exchange Server include AMD, Amgen, AT & T Corp., British Telecom, Charles Schwab & Company Inc., Columbia Healthcare, the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Dow Chemical, NCR Corp., Nissan Motors Corp., Northrup Grumman, PRC/Litton Industries, Siemens Nixdorf Information Systems Inc., the State of Florida, the State of Texas, the Swiss government, Turner Broadcasting Sales, the University of Indiana, the U.S. Air Force, Volkswagen, Westinghouse Electric Co. and Xerox Corp.

Enhancements in Microsoft Exchange Server 5.5

Microsoft Exchange Server provides the following benefits:

A messaging platform for the most demanding business communication, offering the scalability, reliability, availability and manageability that customers require

An unlimited message store that allows the number of users per server to be limited only by hardware

Support for the clustering services of the Microsoft Windows NT® Server operating system Enterprise Edition 4.0, providing high availability and fault tolerance

Upgrade from version 4.0. Standard Edition upgrade is approximately $349, Enterprise Edition approximately $869. There is no charge for a client-access license upgrade to version 5.5.

Special for Microsoft Mail Server customers. Users of Microsoft Mail Server can upgrade to Microsoft Exchange Server Standard Edition for approximately $799 including five client-access licenses.

Trial version now available. Additional pricing information and a fully functional 120-day version of Microsoft Exchange Server is available on the Web http://www.microsoft.com/exchange/

Founded in 1975, Microsoft (NASDAQ
“MSFT”
) is the worldwide leader in software for personal computers. The company offers a wide range of products and services for business and personal use, each designed with the mission of making it easier and more enjoyable for people to take advantage of the full power of personal computing every day.

Microsoft, BackOffice, Windows NT, Outlook, Windows, NetMeeting and Visual InterDev are either registered trademarks or trademarks of Microsoft Corp. in the United States and/or other countries.

Other product and company names herein may be trademarks of their respective owners.

Note to editors: If you are interested in viewing additional information on Microsoft, please visit the Microsoft Web page at http://www.microsoft.com/presspass/ on Microsoft’s corporate information pages.